The Duke of Sussex’s team has hit back over claims that the Palace was aware of his trip to Canada, which awkwardly fell at the exact same time as Prince William’s big tour
There’s never a peaceful day at the Palace. When Prince Harry reunited with his cancer-stricken father for the first time in 19 months, a fresh glimmer of hope broke through – could this secret afternoon tea meet-up mean peace was finally on the horizon?
Now the fragile progress that the Sussex camp made with the Palace at a secret ‘peace summit’ over the summer seems to be in tatters, with both sides briefing against each other once more – bringing the late Queen’s famous ‘recollections may vary’ statement back to the fore.
Two weeks ago, Prince William was moments from touching down in Brazil for his biggest solo job yet as future King. The five-day visit for this years’ Earthshot Awards was jam-packed with engagements, with hundreds of people turning up to catch a glimpse of William. He met with conservationists, delivered a speech at COP30 and even went into full dad mode while holding a 10-month-old baby and chatting to locals.
READ MORE: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle hint at major overseas tour as surprise letter emergesREAD MORE: Andrew’s ‘Plan B from dating apps to wild parties’ as Sarah Ferguson packs up
But the high profile event was somewhat overshadowed by the announcement that Harry too was planning his own trip, at the exact same time. As William landed, he was reportedly greeted with the news that his estranged brother would be travelling to Toronto, Canada, taking part in a number of events with veterans to mark Remembrance Day.
That same week, Harry released a passionate letter about what it means to be British, despite self-exiling to the States.
So the ‘heir and the spare’ found themselves championing causes closest to their hearts, thousands of miles away from each other but inadvertedly competing on the world stage. As royal watchers and commentators made a meal of the awkward clash, Harry’s team were forced to issue a statement to clarify that the Duke was not trying to upstage his brother with the announcement.
Instead, team Sussex said that the timing was all down to Harry’s personal security. But tensions are still rumbling on, as sources at the Palace now say they weren’t informed ahead of time of Harry’s trip – despite his claim to the contrary.
In response to the initial backlash, Harry’s team explained that his overseas trips can only be announced at certain times on the advice of personal security advisors as the prince is “not afforded the same level of security and protection as other working members of the Royal Family”.
A spokesperson for the Duke also said that Harry was in Canada for Remembrance events – the dates of which Harry has no power over.
The Duke’s office then later said that the Palace had been informed in advance of the Canada trip “as a courtesy,” but now royal sources have claimed they didn’t get the memo, sparking confusion on whether it was sent and who to.
A source told The Times that it was “a bit rum” to assert the Palace had been informed when nobody at either Buckingham Palace or Kensington Palace seem to have gotten any advanced notice of the trip before it was announced to the media. It remains unclear who was told of Harry’s visit, but the Mirror has contacted his team for clarity.
That weekend, as Princess Kate and Prince George joined the King and Queen at the poignant Festival of Remembrance in London to honour the sacrifices of our armed forces, Harry was out partying the night away with Meghan at Kris Jenner’s James Bond themed birthday party.
Photos of the Sussexes emerged on Remembrance Sunday morning, with Harry wearing a posh black tuxedo and poppy.
But the behind the scenes snaps vanished as quickly as they had been posted, with Kim Kardashian mysteriously removing photos of Harry and Meghan inside the event from her socials.
Speculation ran wild, but then it was then claimed that Meghan and Harry did not agree that pictures of them taken inside the bash could be publicly shared, according to People, the couple’s favoured US publication. The magazine claimed the couple allegedly opted for the ‘no’ option on a photo consent form, which resulted in the images being removed from Kris and Kim’s social media pages.
However a source close to the event has since refuted the claim, telling the Daily Mail ‘there were no consent forms’ – leading to renewed confusion as to why the photos vanished. That same week, the Duke of Sussex raised eyebrows with an essay titled ‘The Bond, The Banter, The Bravery: What it means to be British – By Prince Harry’.
Reflecting on Remembrance and the war fallen in the letter, he also recalled how the “banter of the mess, the clubhouse, the pub, the stands” are the very “things that make us British”.
But behind the romanticism, one communications specialist suggested that the essay contained several clues about his future plans. Judi James drew attention to one paragraph in particular written by Harry, which reads: “Though currently, I may live in the United States, Britain is, and always will be, the country I proudly served and fought for. The banter of the mess, the clubhouse, the pub, the stands ridiculous as it sounds, these are the things that make us British. I make no apology for it. I love it.”
She told the Mirror: “‘Though currently, I may live in the United States,’ is the fascinating line though, both for its wording and its use of punctuation. ‘Though I now live in the United States’ would be a statement of non-negotiable fact.
“But Harry adds ‘currently’ and ‘may’ to make it sound less fixed and solid. The use of the word ‘currently’ sounds negotiable, appearing to hint at a return to the UK. It’s a word that leaves things open, like: ‘I’m currently single’ would imply a desire to get married or ‘I’m currently unemployed’ would suggest someone is searching for work.” Judi continued: “It sounds like a teaser in terms of a return to the UK… Harry’s choice of wording hints that he’s not only possibly homesick but that a return of some sort might be on the horizon.”
Meanwhile, royal expert Jennie Bond says William’s new candid approach to interviews helps him seem a lot more relatable. During his time in Brazil, the prince did an interview with Brazilian TV host Luciano Huck, who hosted the Earthshot Prize Awards, as he spoke openly about his home life.
William discussed how he and Princess Kate are stuck in a difficult position as they contemplate letting their eldest child, Prince George, have a mobile phone, while also opening up about how he and Kate decided to be open and honest with their three children about their mother’s cancer battle last year.
And according to Jennie, these candid chats about personal matters are a sign of changing tides for the royal family. She told the Mirror: “When I was the BBC’s Royal correspondent, it was the dream to get a proper interview with any member of the royal family. And it remained just a dream. Charles and Diana did, in the end, do sit down interviews – though not with me. Both were disasters. So I can quite understand that William is choosing to do things in a different way. And I think it’s working.
“A formal sit-down interview is inevitably rather stiff and staged. William has found a way of allowing us to know some of his most personal thoughts and feelings in a very natural and rather charming way. And his words are reaching a multigenerational and far broader audience than if he did a formal interview with mainstream media. So, even though I’d find it extremely annoying if I were still the royal correspondent for one of the main TV stations, I think William has hit on an excellent strategy.”
It comes after Harry and Meghan appeared to hint at a major upcoming overseas trip. The Duke and Duchess seemingly revealed their potential travel plans to celebrity astrologer Angela Pearl, who they met in New York City at an event, as they shared they are looking to visit Australia again soon.
In a letter written on October 24, a letter apparently written by the couple to Ms Pearl read: “We want to thank you for joining us. Your energy and insight were such a welcome addition. On a separate note, we hope your family in Ukraine remains safe, and we look forward to staying in touch, especially as we look to visit Australia again.”
The celebrity astrologer hails from Ukraine, but has long resided in Australia’s Gold Coast in the state of Queensland. While the trip Down Under has not been officially confirmed, rumours have started to swirl that Harry and Meghan will travel to Australia, where they went on their first royal tour as a married couple in 2018.
The trip seven years ago coincided with the announcement that Meghan was pregnant with their first child, Archie.
